Would You Sacrifice Space for Style in a Hotel Stay?
*By Amanda Weston*
Small hotel spaces that go big on style are attracting both millennials and older guests, and one founder believes the micro-hotel concept will only continue to spread ー and dominate.
"I think it'll kill it everywhere," Richard Born, co-founder of Pod Hotels operator BD Hotels, told Cheddar Friday.
"It killed it in Washington, and each one of these Pod Hotels have been really fully-occupied from the day we opened the doors."
After expanding to Washington, D.C., last year, Pod is plotting for more growth. A Philadelphia location is under construction, and the building of a Los Angeles outpost will get underway in November.
[Pod Hotels](https://www.thepodhotel.com/) began in New York in 2007 and now has locations in both Manhattan and Brooklyn. The average room size is 125 to 130 square feet, priced around $150-$175 per night. By comparison, The Real Deal [reported](https://therealdeal.com/2018/06/07/pricing-power-finally-returns-to-manhattans-hotels/) the city's average rate is $216.
While his hotels are limited on traditional space, Born said they have more to offer than square footage. All the locations have bars and outdoor spaces, creating a sense of community for guests.
"We simply ask our guests to sacrifice a little bit of real estate for a lot of style," Born said. "We think we deliver very high quality. So if you can't afford to stay in a high end boutique hotel, you can stay in a micro boutique hotel."
A Times Square location debuted this year with 665 rooms and 45 "Pod Pads" for longer-term stays. An upgrade on the original rooms, the micro-apartments run between 500 and 550 square feet for a two-bedroom.
"The interesting thing about the Pod Pads is that most of our customers come in to look at an apartment and just take the key and stay," Born said. "Because we're fully furnished, and you have all services, and you really don't need anything other than your own clothes and a toothbrush."
BD Hotels also manages New York City's The Mercer, The Marlton, The Bowery, The Maritime, and The Greenwich hotel properties.
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/micro-hotels-trade-size-for-savings-and-style).
Not only is April Financial Literacy Month, it’s also the kickoff of the spring homebuying season. So now is the time to make sure you have a financial plan in place – and why it might not be wise for that to include buying your first home.
While the U.S. may slowly be on the path to lowering inflation (and therefore interest rates), Europe has thoroughly trounced America, putting it on the path to lower rates by this summer.
April's release of the monthly Housing Starts and Building Permits reports by the Census Bureau provides crucial insights into the construction activity in the housing market. These reports are an economic indicator, shedding light on the current state of the housing market and its broader economic impact.
Caitlin Clark is heading to the Indiana Fever, the number one draft pick and the highest-scoring college basketball player of all time. And while she may not be getting millions from the WNBA, there's a few ways she'll net compensation for her generational talents.
Author of 'Clean Meat,' Paul Shapiro joins Cheddar to discuss how the cellular agricultural revolution helps lower rates of foodborne illness and greatly improves environmental sustainability. Plus, how his company The Better Meat Co. is bringing healthier food options to the table.
Recent headlines might make it sound like World War III is imminent, but when it comes to your finances, it's not the time to panic. The market is coming off its longest winning streak since 2011.
You may have noticed fewer new venture capital-backed startups (like Airbnb or Uber) lately. The market slowed to a crawl after 2021, but things are expected to take off again in 2025.
Corporate earnings season is underway, that time when companies share their billions in sales or double-digit profits. But the data shows even companies are struggling with high inflation and interest rates.
Boeing continues their terrifying trend of having their planes fall apart mid-flight, inflation — checks notes — is still up and the future of AI looks terrifying. Cheery!
Food waste – uneaten scraps or leftovers sent to landfills – is responsible for 10% of global emissions. Mill, a new product from the co-founder of Nest, thinks technology can play a role in eliminating it.
